Agree with all of that apart from the last bit. I'd pretty much abandoned hope of us dining at the top table again. I thought the barriers to entry were too great. It just goes to show you how nothing in this world should ever be taken for granted. Something frequently intervenes to move the pieces on the board in a game changing way.
And the last bit of your post perfectly sums up my mantra for life, mainly that nothing remains the same for ever and that life is cyclical.
For the last 20 years, every Rag who knew me and even some who didn't would make a beeline for me whenever we'd lost (especially to them) or we suffered more misfortune like relegation or losing the odd good player we had (SWP, Anelka spring to mind). But I remained stiff in my resolve that one day, the natural order of things would be restored and the day would come that we'd finish ahead of them in the league and actually win the damn thing again!
They all though I was a fuckin fruit loop as I used to sit there with a straight face calmly telling them all that City would return to our position of prominence over them and I'd also live to see the day that ManUre were reduced to playing Sunday League football on Hough End playing fields with one man and his dog watching the bastards.
As you may have guessed, I have a pathological hatred for them but bit by bit my hopes and dreams are turning into reality. The significance of our 2012 title win passes most people by, because we could have gone on to win 10 titles in a row, but it would have never carried any weight with those bastards because we'd have always had 'yes but you couldn't do it when Ferguson was manager'. Seeing his crumpled face at the end of that match will live with me forever and is only second to seeing Kun wheeling away after scoring that dramatic late winner.
Now all they have left is, the size of Old Toilet stadium, number of league title wins, number of CL wins, us never having won the CL, their bigger financial turnover and my personal favourite the empty seats at our place. Bit by bit we're happily burbling along ticking off the boxes as we reach our milestones as they continue to count our empty seats. The law of averages always dictated there was a possibility this could happen, I'm just astounded its come in such a stunning fashion and happened so quickly.
Our rise may not have been organic, but a lottery win is a lottery win and however you've come by your good fortune it all comes down to the same thing, to be successful you need money, which makes even more money, which brings even more success, rinse and repeat. All we have to do is cast a glance at our illustrious neighbours, Real, Barca and Bayern to see this is the case. But lest we forget that nothing lasts forever, all we have to do is look at the 2 Milan giants and Ajax.
